Smaller classes, 24/7 tech access: Can LAUSD superintendent make it happen?

Alberto Carvalho takes "a punt" and smiles after being asked which basketball team he will now support, the Miami Heat or the Los Angeles Lakers, on Dec. 9, 2021. The exiting Miami-Dade Public Schools leader announced his departure for Los Angeles as its new superintendent during a press conference at iPrep Academy in Miami. Photo credit: Carl Juste/Miami Herald/TNS/ABACAPRESS.COM.

February 14 is the first day of school for LA Unified School District’s new superintendent Alberto Carvalho, who comes from Miami. He joins LAUSD at a challenging time: Thousands of kids still aren’t vaccinated, enrollment is dwindling, and students have fallen years behind in reading and math.  

Carvalho’s 100-day plan includes creating new schools that students want to attend, providing 24/7 technology for students, reducing class sizes, expanding early education, and offering more opportunities for older students, according to Los Angeles Times reporter Howard Blume.

Blume says the new superintendent might also take a data-driven approach to school improvement, similar to what he did in Miami. That could look like sitting down with school principals, examining testing and other data, and asking them what they need to get better. 

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